Good news stories
Canal and River Trust volunteering 
Members of the project team have taken part in two volunteering days, supporting the Canal and River Trust.
During the two days at Duddeston Saltley and Mill Street, near Aston University, the team supported with tasks including:
- vegetation management and clearance
- litter removal
- bi-yearly maintenance checks along the canals
The team volunteered over 130 hours which is fantastic, because we are supporting the whole community who access the canal and river network.
Corporate volunteering days are vital to assist the Canal and River Trust’s continual commitment to ensuring these green spaces are open and safe for the local communities, or anyone travelling along the historic waterways.
The teams enjoyed both days, and they would recommend volunteering with the Trust to anyone, to improve your own wellbeing, the community and the environment.
Raffle and football fundraising event for Â鶹ÊÓƵ Blaze FC and Â鶹ÊÓƵ's Ronald McDonald House charity
On Thursday 4 July at the project, it was a day of two halves for the project.
In the morning, we hosted a summer health and safety standdown session with demonstrations from Nationwide Platforms, Flannery Plant Hire, MRSL Training and Rescue and Palmers Scaffolding. 
Over 150 of our team on the project including client and supply chain partners attended and got involved in the activities on the day. It was a great opportunity to reset the project team’s focus as well as focus on the health and safety of the site. We also had ChangeKitchen CIC (ChangeKitchen CIC ChangeKitchen CIC) put on a wonderful spread for lunch, keeping the team well fed!
In the afternoon, we held a fundraiser for two extremely important local cases. Â鶹ÊÓƵ’s Ronald McDonald House Charity (Â鶹ÊÓƵ House - Ronald McDonald House Charities (rmhc.org.uk)) and Â鶹ÊÓƵ Blaze FC (Â鶹ÊÓƵ Blaze FC).
The fundraiser included a raffle and football tournament held at Â鶹ÊÓƵ's Powerleague. We had 13 fantastic prizes up for grabs all donated by local companies to the project (including an overnight stay and 3 course meal at The Grand Hotel in Â鶹ÊÓƵ and a signed Aston Villa shirt), and 10 teams from the project team all entered with the tournament. The total amount raised was £1,360 so we are able to donate £680 to each worthwhile and amazing causes.
Hike for Homeless event
On Saturday 8 June, three members of our project team took part in St Basil’s ‘Hike for Homeless’ event in Abergavenny, South Wales.
The trio hiked over 15.5 miles (more than half a marathon) and raised £800 for the charity!
Over 500 participants took part in the event, raising an impressive £22.9K. All the funds raised will continue to support the amazing work St Basils does, providing essential support to young people at risk of homelessness in the West Midlands.
Great Â鶹ÊÓƵ Run x Ronald McDonald House charity 
On Sunday 5 May, three members of our project team took part in the Great Â鶹ÊÓƵ Half Marathon running for the local Ronald McDonald House charity.
The trio did an amazing job, all completing the half marathon and raising over £1,000 for the charity!
The Ronald McDonald House at Â鶹ÊÓƵ Children’s Hospital is one of their largest purpose-built accommodation facilities. In 2023, the house supported 1,097 families with the longest family stay being 369 nights.
As an independent charity, RMHC rely on the support and generosity of volunteers, fundraisers and donors to make this all possible.
Â鶹ÊÓƵ Blaze Football Club
We have also been supporting Â鶹ÊÓƵ Blaze Football Club who are a community led football club offering the chance for LGBTQ+ people and allies the chance to play the fame in a safe, inclusive space without fear of facing abuse.
They run their 'football to all' sessions on Wednesdays from 7:00pm to 8:00pm, with the focus being on creating a community players can feel a part of. Sessions are:
- free
- open to all abilities
VolkerFitzpatrick and Taziker sponsored Â鶹ÊÓƵ Blaze’s banner for Â鶹ÊÓƵ’s Pride weekend on Saturday 25 May, as well as their ‘football for all’ sessions.
Equiano Plus Project
We invited members of the Equiano Plus Project to visit site and gain further insight into the project and its impact on the community. The Equiano Plus Project, operated by JERICHO, supports survivors of modern slavery with employment to health and wellbeing.
The visit included a presentation on the works we are undertaking on the project, and the different career paths available in the construction and engineering industries.
We also had an induction from one of our supply chain partners, MRS Training and Rescue, who were able to explain the importance of safety when working in confined spaces.
Visitors shared their aspirations and how the Equiano Plus Project has helped them, with further discussions on how we can support the project in the future.
Easter egg collection
Throughout March, the team at the A38 were collecting Easter eggs.
We collected an impressive 101 eggs which meant we were able to share these between three fantastic charities local to the project:
- JERICHO’s Equiano Plus
- Nechells POD
- St Basils
Open Doors
For the second year running, we were able to host students at A38(M) Tame Valley Viaduct project as part of Open Doors event.
We held three sessions over the week and over 30 students from attended.
We were blown away by their engagement during each session and the fantastic questions asked while delivering the presentation and taking them out on site to see the structure.
Raising money for Cancer Research UK
At the end of February, 10 members of the project team took part in the 10K Winter Run in London to raise money for Cancer Research UK. 
The team managed to raise over £1,200 for this fantastic cause.
All team members enjoyed the atmosphere and had great runs, with several personal bests and all members completing the run in under an hour!
It was a great effort from all. Over 20,000 people took part in the run, raising more than £723,000 for Cancer Research UK so far.
The Envision Programme
For the last few months, several members of the project team have been working with a local school on a mentoring programme called Envision.
Envision empowers young people from less advantaged backgrounds to develop essential skills and confidence through a cross-school active citizenship competition. We were paired with 10 students from a local school and since October, over 50 hours have been volunteered by the team to mentor and support the students with designing, developing and delivering a social action project to make a positive difference in their school community.
The final session was held this month at Â鶹ÊÓƵ City football Ground, where the students delivered their pitch to a panel of judges and in front of 4 other local schools, their mentors and teachers who have all taken part in the programme too.
The sessions have been well received by both the mentors and students and there has been a definite improvement in the young peoples’ confidence and be able to express their ideas. The team were so proud of the young people who worked hard to improve their communication, determination, creativity and teamwork throughout the programme.
Page last updated: 30 August 2024